70 Years Old and Going Strong with Down Syndrome and no Dementia

ScienceDaily — In the world of Down syndrome, 'Mr. C' is a rarity. A real person whose progress has been tracked for the past 16 years, at seventy, 'Mr. C' has well surpassed the average life expectancy of a person with Down syndrome, currently in the late fifties, but in the teens when 'Mr. C' was born. Further, 'Mr. C' does not exhibit clinical symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, which is almost a given for people with typical Down syndrome over 65 yeas of age.

'Mr. C', while remaining nameless, puts an optimistic face on the future of aging for people with Down Syndrome, as scientists ask the critical question: What is it about 'Mr. C''s individual characteristics and experiences that have made him not only live longer, but also age successfully despite having Down syndrome? The case of 'Mr. C', including descriptions of comprehensive cognitive, behavioral, and genetic analyses and implications for research is published in the June 2008 issue of the journal, Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.

To view this complete article, please click the title above.